MLB Player News

Turner (wrist) will begin a rehab assignment at High-A Rancho Cucamonga Saturday and could return to the Dodgers early next week, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Turner will play third base for Rancho Cucamonga on Saturday and Sunday and could rejoin the Dodgers for the upcoming series in Miami, which starts Tuesday. The 33-year-old could require a couple extra rehab appearances given his significant layoff to start the season, but the Dodgers are hoping two games will be enough for the veteran third baseman to get re-acclimated.

Carpenter is out of the lineup against the Padres on Friday.

Carpenter will take a seat following three straight hitless outings and with southpaw Eric Lauer on the bump for San Diego. In his stead, Jedd Gyorko will start at third and bat fifth. Expect Carpenter back in the lineup Saturday.

Ohtani will serve as the Angels' DH and bat fourth against Minnesota on Friday.

Ohtani will bat out of the cleanup spot for the second time this season as Albert Pujols gets the night off. Over 70 plate appearances, Ohtani is hitting .354/.400/.677 with five home runs and 16 RBI.

Cespedes (quad) is back in the Mets' lineup Friday against the Phillies, source reports.

Cespedes' sore quad prevented him from starting Wednesday, but he's already back in action. For the season, he's hitting a respectable (though disappointing by his standards) .248/.313/.457, with seven homers and three steals.

Pederson started in center field and batted second Thursday, going 0-for-2 with a walk and a run scored in a loss to the Reds.

The Dodgers have been decimated by injuries in the early going, but even with Yasiel Puig returning to the lineup this week, Pederson continued his string of starts in center against right-handed starters. Manager Dave Roberts stated that Enrique Hernandez would take over center field duties, with Chris Taylor filling in for Corey Seager (elbow) at short, but his lineup cards over the past couple of weeks indicate that Pederson is on the strong side of a platoon. Seager has already been ruled out for the season, so this window of playing time could stay open for a while, making the 26-year-old a decent flier for power and counting stats.

Ozuna went 2-for-4 in a win over the Padres on Thursday.

Ozuna continues to make serviceable offensive contributions, but he's unquestionably underperforming in terms of overall impact as compared to prior seasons. The slugger has only seven extra-base hits (five doubles, two home runs) over his first 145 plate appearances, while his slugging percentage is currently a career-low .333 thanks to a jaw-droppingly anemic .079 ISO, easily a career-worst figure as well. Contact issues appear to be playing a part in his struggles, as Ozuna's .330 BABIP and career-high 47.1 percent hard contact rate are offset by a rise of more than four points in his strikeout rate to 25.5 percent. Moreover, he's also pulling the ball at the highest rate (44.1 percent) since his rookie 2013 campaign in Miami.

Alvarez hasn't played in a game for Double-A Corpus Christi since last weekend after getting struck in the hand by a pitch. He's expected to be out for a week, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Alvarez is hitting .299/.374/.542 with six home runs and 26 RBI through 27 games this season. This is the 20-year-old's first taste of Double-A ball, and though he was strictly a first-base propspect heading into the year, he's spent a majority of his time with the Hooks in left field, learning a new position. Expect to see him back in action soon.

Ohtani went 2-for-4 with a homer and a pair of RBI in Thursday's win against the Twins.

Ohtani's homer, his fifth of the season, was a seventh-inning solo shot off Trevor Hildenberger that stretched the Angels' lead to three. He also had a third-inning RBI double, his fourth double of the season. The two-way phenom has perhaps impressed more with the bat than the arm so far this season, hitting .354/.400/.677 in 70 plate appearances. Among players who have hit that plate appearance threshold, Ohtani's slugging percentage ranks fourth, as does his 189 wRC+. His .400 BABIP suggests that his numbers are due to come down a bit, but with the 13th-highest exit velocity in the league and above-average speed, he fits the profile of the sort of player who could run a relatively high BABIP.

Soler went 2-for-4 with a walk and two RBI in Thursday's loss to the Orioles.

Soler's 2018 resurgence with another quality outing Thursday. He's hitting .333 in 45 at-bats as the No. 2 hitter in the Royals' order and his .328 season average ranks ninth in the American League. He and the Royals will continue their road trip Friday in Cleveland.

Martinez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and two RBI Thursday against the Yankees.

Martinez blasted the game-winning home run off Dellin Betances in the eighth inning, his ninth home run of the season. His power is slowly picking up as he now has four home runs in his past eight games while also adding two doubles in the span. He is also riding an 11 game-hitting streak which has him hitting .348/.395/.623 through 138 at-bats this season.